Encoding with Windows Media Daniel Orme-Doutre (dano) Consulting Engineer Microsoft MS Studios

An Industry Adage Pick Two You can have all three!

Trade Offs: Project Management

Trade Offs: Encoding

Agenda

Know Your Source Questions to consider: Have you watched the material? What tape format is it? What digital format is it? How big is it? Quality of the audio? Do you know the in/out points? What is the duration? “Garbage in, garbage out”

Know Your Delivery Answer these Will it be computer playback? Live, Video On Demand, Download? Encoding for a review, big event, editing? Big screen playback in a conference center or desktop LCD? Are there other files with this project? CD, DVD etc…

Know Your Windows Media An MPEG4 based codec Now WMV9 is SMPTE standardized. Variety of codecs in WMV9 series. It can play on almost any playback device CD/DVD Portable devices: PMC, Smartphone, Zune Live, OnDemand (VOD), File based SD/HD: IPTV, HD-DVD(BluRay and HDDVD) DemosXbox360

Know Your Windows Media: Encoder Windows Media Encoder Products Windows Media Encoder 9 Series Windows Media Encoder 9 Series SDK WMFormat, Player 11 SDK Windows Media Codecs Windows Media Audio 10 Professional Windows Media Audio 9.2 Lossless Windows Media Audio 9.2 Windows Media Audio 9 Voice Windows Media Video 9 Windows Media Video 9 Screen Windows Media Video 9.1 Image Windows Media Video 9 Advanced Profile

Know Your Windows Media Con’t Places the Encoder exists… Windows Server 2003 (WMS) Free: Microsoft website Windows Movie Maker 2.0 (and 1) Microsoft Producer-Office 2003 Suite. Windows Media Player 9 (WMA) Real time encoders like: Inlet Technologies Digital Rapids Winnov 3 rd party applications like: Adobe Premiere/After Effects SoundForge Canopus ProCoder AVID-DigiDesign Telestream Flip 4 Mac (yup for MAC)

Windows Media Benefits Enabling… Cross platform-browser StandardizationVC1SMPTE Digital Rights Management (DRM) Process Must have license provider Portable devices, on demand, subscription services

When U Encode

When U Encode: Fast Tips Speed up that encoding… Use live source if SD or smaller resolution Batch automation Encoder script Custom Profiles Encode off multiple machines Encoder utilizes dual processors Try processor affinity (multi encodes on multiprocs) Use accelerator cards One pass CBR instead of 2pass

When U Encode: Good Tips Quality encoding… Keep digital, digital DV -> DV DV -> DV DV -> Svideo  Don’t mix color spaces Resize outside the encoder (mostly) Dig deep, play with the settings

Resources Suggested Websites Microsoft: Expression: MSDN: Suggested Books Windows Media Resource Kit ISBN-10: Windows Media 9 Series by Example ISBN-10: Quantel Digital Fact Book (free!) MPEG Handbook ISBN X